


See You Then, Doc

by Tv_Saved_The_Teenage_Girl



Category: Back to the Future (Movies)
Genre: Backstory, Breaking and Entering, Dogs, Found Family, Gen, Getting to Know Each Other, Origin Story, Pre-Canon, death of an oc dog
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-09 19:47:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27971825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tv_Saved_The_Teenage_Girl/pseuds/Tv_Saved_The_Teenage_Girl
Summary: When Marty's curiosity gets the better of him, he finds himself with not only a job, but possibly two new friends.
Relationships: Emmett "Doc" Brown & Marty McFly
Comments: 13
Kudos: 19





	1. stranger danger

**Author's Note:**

> I have a general idea of where this is heading so there will probably be a better summary later on, hopefully. I just wanted to explore the possible relationship Marty and the Doc could have had before 1985.

“Listen, Marty, there isn’t anything I can do.” Dave shrugged, turning away from Marty for the third time as he tried to look busy. His attempt to shake off his younger brother failed as he maneuvered to stand in the way of Dave’s broom.

“Come on, you know I need the money for the band. I can’t play if I don’t have a guitar.” Marty pleaded, this was the third place of business he tried, today alone.

“Look, they just aren’t hiring right now. But they might be soon if you don’t let me do my job.” Dave sighed. “Why didn’t you try to save sooner?”

“I’m fourteen, Dave. I couldn’t _get_ a job sooner.”

“Oh, right,” He responded, disinterested in the conversation.

“Thanks a lot,” Marty huffed before leaving the Burger King, the cold air rushing to meet him. This was his last resort and it failed him, why he was surprised he didn’t know. He looked down at his skateboard, his most prized possession, and considered pawning it. But the moment passed as quickly as it came. “I must be getting desperate,” He laughed as he shook his head.

But just as he was about to drop his board, Marty noticed a flash of light out of the corner of his eye. Slowly turning his head, he was greeted with another flash of light beaming out of the dirty windows of an out of place garage. _How had he never noticed it there before?_ Three more flashes shot out of the windows and before he realized it, Marty had reached the fence blocking his path. Not giving it much thought, Marty unlatched the fence, closing it behind him as he took a step towards the building. It was then that he heard someone mumbling on the other side, only furthering his curiosity.

Taking a few more steps, Marty noticed the side door was cracked open. It was practically an invitation to walk in, he thought to himself. I mean, how could he not. He only peaked at first, just one look and then he’d be on his way, the owner of this property none the wiser. The first thing he noticed was how trashed out the place was, papers and boxes scattered all over what he assumed was the kitchen. The sudden sound of too many clocks going off scared the shit out of him and he practically flung himself back, catching his balance on a garbage can. Marty’s heart was racing as he stepped up to the door again, this time nudging it open slightly.

On the wall to his left was a slew of clocks, so many, in fact, that if this garage wasn’t such a mess he’d have half the mind to think it was a store. Where he got the confidence to just walk into someone else’s house was unknown to him, but he couldn’t help it. It was almost like he had no choice in the matter. Marty was fully standing in front of the clocks when he decided to make his way towards the light, only to hide behind a wall when he heard a booming voice.

“I think I finally worked out the kinks, Galileo!” The man exclaimed to what Marty thought was himself until he was able to peer from behind the wall. A tall man stood in the middle of the room, a scruffy looking dog sat beside him as the two looked at a couple of machines on the table.

Taking off his welding helmet, the white-haired man pushed a series of buttons and suddenly the machine sputtered to life. A mechanical arm moved to grab a nearby can of dog food before swerving it around to another machine, which in turn opened the can. Finally, the arm moved to successfully dump the contents of the can into a dog bowl directly under it on the floor.

“Whoa!” It came out before Marty could stop himself, his hand coming up to slap his mouth as his eyes went wide. The man turned around just in time to see Marty stumble backward, falling directly into an empty bucket as a stack of newspapers came crashing down on top of him. “Shit!”

“Are you alright?” The man asked as Marty began flailing in a sad attempt to escape the situation he put himself in.

“I’m sorry! I uh didn’t mean to tre-trespass! I was just looking for a job, a-and I saw the fl-flashing lights and I-” Marty began to franticly explain himself before realizing the man didn’t look cross with him. “Um…yeah I’m alright, I think.” He continued to struggle as he tried to push himself out of the bucket with no use.

“I’m Doctor Emmett Brown,” The man said, offering him a hand as he hoisted Marty to his feet. “What’s your name?”

“It’s Marty…Marty McFly.” He answered, dusting himself off before moving to re-stack the newspapers. “I’m really sorry for walking in unannounced.” He apologized again, scratching the back of his neck. The sudden sight of a scrawny fourteen-year-old must not have scared the man…Doctor Brown, because he seemed almost unfazed by his presence.

“Tell me, Marty, do you like science?”

“Um, well, it’s not my worst subject.” Marty shrugged, unsure of what Doctor Brown was getting at.

“It seems you have the curiosity for it,” The man joked, causing Marty to let out a sigh of relief. So he definitely wasn’t upset. “This is my latest invention,” Doctor Brown continued, moving back over to the table. “It isn’t much, but you see sometimes I don’t make it home in time to feed Galileo.” He said, leaning down to pet his dog, who also didn’t seem bothered by Marty.

“Isn’t much?!” Marty laughed, moving closer to the table to get a better look at the machines. “It’s incredible.”

“You think so?” The man asked as if Marty’s opinion actually mattered to him.

“Think so? I’ve never seen anything like it.” He admitted.

“Then I must show you this other project I’m working on,” Doctor Brown turned Marty’s attention to another machine, and then another, and then another. He was unaware just how long they’d spent looking at the man’s inventions, but when Marty looked out the window he noticed the sunlight was nearly gone.

“Shit, I have to go,” Marty said once he realized the time, the clocks on the other side of the garage chimed in unison as if agreeing with him.

“Before you go,” Doctor Brown spoke before he could make a move to leave. “Did you say you were looking for a job?” He asked, piquing Marty’s interest.

“I did, yeah. I mean, I am looking for a job, yes.” He stumbled over his words.

“How would you like to work for me? I could use the help,” Doctor Brown said, gesturing to his machines.

“I don’t think I’m smart enough to help you with that,” Marty admitted.

“Nonsense, I don’t believe that for a second.” The man dismissed Marty’s words. “Besides, I also wouldn’t mind having someone around to take care of Galileo when I’m gone. And she seems to like you.” He pointed out. It was only then that Marty realized he had been petting her belly for well over ten minutes. “I’ll pay you $3.35 an hour.” He added, the opportunity becoming far too good to turn down.

“Well, uh, can I think about it? You know what they say, stranger danger and all.”

“Yes, of course.” Doctor Brown nodded his head. “Why don’t you come back at the end of the week to let me know what you’ve decided.”

“Sounds good to me,” Marty agreed as he was halfway out the door. “See you then, Doc.”


	2. just the usual

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are, a new chapter, possibly another tonight, who knows

It didn’t take much convincing for Marty’s parents to agree to let him work for Doc, although he didn’t tell them the whole truth. He told them most of it…some of it…they knew enough. They certainly didn’t know how the two met, nor that he resided in a rundown garage behind the Burger King. And Marty knew Dave didn’t care enough to tell them. 

At first, he was unsure about Doc, this strange mad scientist with a dog and wild hair, then again who was Marty to judge. But he also felt like the deal was too good to be true, half the time Marty just played around with Galileo, taking her on walks and giving her as many belly rubs as her heart desired. That was usually when Doc was away doing who knows what, Marty always made sure to visit more when Gali was on her own. The other half of the time, he was helping Doc build countless things, fascinated every step of the way… almost every step.

“Marty…Marty?!” Doc shook his shoulders, pulling him back to the present. “You can stop holding it in place now.” 

“Oh,” Marty laughed lightly, letting go of a…well he wasn’t so sure what he was holding. It was an odd, heavy shaped piece of metal that Doc had been trying to secure in place, which it seemed he had successfully done as it stayed put without Marty’s help. “Sorry,” 

“It's alright, I remember what it was like when I was your age,” Doc sighed as he put down his screwdriver, his gaze shifting to the grimy windows. “I remember it like it was yesterday…” He said, trailing off, and for a second Marty could have sworn he traveled back in time. “And you know what I remember most?” Doc quickly snapped back, digging his wallet out of his pocket. “Being hungry all the time. Why don’t you go get us some food.” He said, handing Marty some money. 

“Alright, Doc,” He complied, making his way out of the garage to the Burger King. Each week, they would order the same thing, from the same restaurant. And every week, Doc would give him the cash, always more than he needed. And every time Marty would return with change, Doc would refuse to take it back. 

The thing that confused Marty the most about Doc was his use of money. From a first glance, he assumed Doc didn’t have much, living in a dirty garage with an awful draft that let in the frigid air. Even after getting to know him, he wondered where he worked, what he got up to when he left for days at a time. But there he was, paying Marty to do practically nothing but keep him company, eating out all the time, letting him keep the change, and where was he getting the money for all these experiments? It was all a big mystery to him, one he felt wasn’t his place to ask about. And Marty wasn’t about to do anything to lose this job, with the weekly payments and fast food change, he was really beginning to save up. Some secrets were worth not knowing. It took Marty only a few moments to return with dinner.

“So what is it you’re trying to save up for?” Doc asked between bites. The topic of conversation while not unusual was not typical for them, as this is when Doc would usually ramble on about what it was exactly they were building and Marty would try to follow along. 

“I’m trying to buy a guitar,” He replied, taking a gulp of his Pepsi. “A few friends of mine are putting a band together, but I need to get my own guitar,” Marty explained, his knee bouncing under the table.

“What kind of music do you play?” 

“Uh, just the usual…rock music.” Truthfully, Marty was worried Doc would think his band was a waste of time, like most of the adults in his life. But he should have known Doc was different.

“Oh, that’s wonderful, Marty.” He gave him a genuine smile before crumpling up his now-empty wrapper, disposing of it in the bag it came in. “I’ve never tried to play the guitar before,” Doc noted, standing up to tinker with something he had pulled out earlier, dusting the cobwebs off. “Is it difficult?” 

“It is when you don’t get much time to practice,” Marty admitted, finishing his burger. “Between having to borrow my friend's guitar and my parents telling me to “ _keep the racket down_ ”, I haven’t exactly mastered it.” He stood, throwing his trash in the bag before adding it to the pile they had begun to create, in some small attempt to clean.

“Hmm,” Was the only response he got from Doc, seemingly too focused on what he was messing with to say anything else. Shrugging it off, Marty moved to feed Gali, something the shaggy dog noticed as soon as she heard the can open, nearly knocking Marty over with excitement. 

“Whoa, Gali!” Marty laughed, giving her an affectionate pat on the head. “I can’t feed you if you knock me out.” 

“Marty, you know you’re welcome over whenever you want?” Doc spoke, pulling both Marty and Galileo’s attention. “What I mean is, if you need a place to practice, you can practice here, I don’t mind.” Marty blinked a few times, processing Doc’s words.

“You really mean that, Doc?” He asked, placing Gali’s bowl on the floor.

“Of course,” Doc replied as if it was ridiculous to question him. “I’m only here half the time, and I know Galileo is happier when you’re around. I don’t see why you couldn’t practice here.” 

“Oh, gee Doc,” A huge grin began to make its way on Marty’s face as he moved across the room to clap Doc on the shoulder. “That really means a lot to me, you know?!” 

“As long as I get to hear your band play sometime,” 

“That can be arranged!” They stood there for a second before moving again. “So what are we working on now?” 

“Have you ever wondered what Galileo was thinking?”


	3. better than lucky

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING - mentions of the death of a dog and also the injury of another dog, nothing graphic
> 
> dude why the hell did I think writing this was a good idea, lol

The moment Marty arrived at Doc’s and neither resident seemed to be home, he knew something was wrong. _Everything felt wrong_. It took him a minute to look in the back, adjacent to the garage, there was a relatively small plot of grass. Marty never liked going back there, something about it felt…sad, and today was no different. Turning the corner, he found Doc, kneeling on the ground. What he was looking at, Marty couldn’t quite see from the corner, an old tree blocking his view.

He wished he never took a step closer, wished he never came to visit, wished he never interacted with this damn place to begin with the moment he took that step. It took a second for his eyes to properly focus as if they didn’t want to be the one to break the news to him. In front of Doc were two headstones, the one closest to the tree seemed relatively older compared to the one next to it, both made Marty’s stomach turn. The older headstone read Copernicus, but the second was a small makeshift attempt at a headstone, only meant to hold the place for a real one. No name. But it didn’t need one.

He was on his knees before he knew it, with a loud thud, causing Doc to finally notice his presence.

“Marty,” The old man said in a whispered tone, his voice hoarse. “God, Marty, I’m sorry I meant to call you.” Doc stood, making his way over to the teen still on the ground with a blank expression on his face.

“What happened to Gali, Doc?” His voice broke. “Where is she?”

“It happened this morning…She…She just didn’t wake up,” Doc responded, resting a hand on Marty’s shoulder.

“B-but, but she was full of so much life, I don’t understand.” He shook his head, fighting back tears.

“She was old, Marty. It’s natural, everything has its time.” The older man tried to reassure him.

“But it’s not fair!” Marty exclaimed, standing up to face Doc.

“She was just ready to go,”

“But I wasn’t ready!” Marty grabbed the lapels of Doc’s coat, shaking the man. “I’m not ready, it’s not fair! It’s not fair!” He repeated until Doc wrapped his arms around him, causing Marty to fall apart as tears began to stream down his face without a sign of stopping.

He cried so hard he eventually threw up, unable to calm himself down. It was only when Marty passed out on the cluttered couch that the tears finally stopped, his body too tired to continue for the day. He woke up the next morning in his bed with a splitting headache, unaware of how exactly he got home.

Two weeks went by before Marty returned to the garage, before he could bring himself too. Going back was just as painful as he expected it to be, finding the place empty. Galileo’s bowl still on the floor of the kitchen, the dog feeding machine sat idle on the counter above it. Countless objects and memories lay scattered around the garage, and it felt like coming back was almost too much to bear. But the grief also felt good somehow, it made him feel a little more alive. Seeing the pieces that were left of Gali gave Marty a strange comfort that he didn’t quite understand.

“Marty? I didn’t expect to see you here…” Doc spoke as he walked through the door, surprised. “I wasn’t sure if um…” He trailed off, not wanting to finish his sentence, but he didn’t have to.

“What are we working on today, Doc?” Marty tried to sound as normal as possible, thinking, _hoping_ that if he pretended to feel fine, then maybe the empty feeling in his heart wouldn’t feel so massive anymore. “Anything exciting?” Taking a moment to process the teen’s words, Doc made his way over to him, placing his hands on Marty’s shoulders.

“Do you know anything about time travel, Marty?” He asked, causing Marty to laugh for the first time in a couple of weeks.

~

It only took Marty a few months to save up enough money to buy a guitar from the second-hand store. And keeping his promise, Doc let Marty practice at his place. And keeping _his_ promise, Marty’s band played for Doc. 

But after Galileo passed it felt different, strange to be there alone. Marty missed how she’d howl along with his singing or how she’d bark when he’d forget to take her out, too focused on his music. He wished he spent more time with her, appreciated her more.

Doc seemed surprised at first when Marty stuck around after a year, but as time passed, it became clear Marty was there to stay. Truthfully, Marty didn’t care that people thought Doc was crazy, he was the first adult that had ever treated him like he wasn’t a kid, and he appreciated that. Not to mention, there was no better way to gain life experience than to get in trouble with Doc. What his parents didn’t know couldn’t hurt them, right?

~

A couple of days after his sixteenth birthday, Marty couldn’t wait to get to Doc’s. A brand new guitar slung around his back as he skated down the street, clinging to the back of a truck, turning up his caller when he felt a few drops of rain. He was only a block away from Doc’s when it happened, rounding a corner, Marty saw an unmoving mass on the side of the road.

It didn’t take him long to realize what it was as he let go of the truck, slowing down so he could head back. A small mangy dog laid on the ground and Marty was certain he had been hit. Without another thought, he picked up the poor thing and ran the rest of the way to Doc’s, with his board in one hand and the little creature in the other as he sheltered them with his jacket.

“Doc!” Marty threw his board down and banged on the door. “Doc, are you home?! Open up!” He pounded the door until the older man answered.

“Marty? What’s wrong?” Doc asked, confused as to why the teen didn’t just use his key. “Come in before it starts pouring,” He ushered Marty in.

“Doc, I-I don’t know if he’s ok, he hasn’t moved at all.” Marty rushed his words as he moved to reveal the puppy.

“Great Scott!” Doc whispered, gently taking the dog into his hands. “What happened?”

“I don’t know, I ju-just found him like this…” His voice hitched as tears began to fill his eyes.

“He’s still breathing. Put your things down and let’s get him to the vet,” The older man instructed, nodding his head in the direction of the couch where Marty promptly put down his guitar. In a matter of seconds, the three of them were in Doc’s car, Marty cradling the puppy the whole way.

Marty didn’t know how long they waited in the emergency vet clinic, but his knee was getting tired of his incessant bouncing. Doc had barely said a word since they arrived, besides handing Marty the paperwork to fill out while he talked to the lady behind the desk. His silence led Marty to internalize all the choices he made, which only made his knee bounce harder. That is until Doc placed a hand on Marty’s back, causing his leg to finally still.

“Are you ok, Marty?” Doc asked, keeping his hand in place. “You look a little pale.”

“I’m sorry, Doc,” The teen sighed, looking over at his friend. “I know this will probably cost a lot. I can pay you back for it, I can work for free or sell my guitar. I just couldn’t leave him on the side of the road…I couldn’t leave him.” He blurted out all the words he had been mulling over in his mind.

“That’s all you’re worried about?” Doc laughed, patting Marty on the back before removing his hand. “Don’t worry about that.”

“But-”

“Marty,” Doc stopped him. “Don’t worry about it.” Before the teen could object again, he was interrupted by the vet.

“You both can come back now, Einstein is awake.” She said and gestured for them to follow her.

“Einstein?” Dock asked.

“They needed a name,” Marty shrugged. “And you always name your dogs after scientists.”

~

Einstein was lucky, better than lucky, the little guy walked away with a cast on his left leg and a cone of shame, but that was it. The vet said he must have just been clipped, but that he was malnourished and was going to need lots of love, care, and attention in order to recover. Marty was relieved, to say the least, those were things he could do, no problem.

It was late by the time they got back to Doc’s, the rain was still pouring and all three of them were exhausted from the day’s events. Einstein fell asleep on the ride home and Marty didn’t dare wake him, gently placing him in Gali’s old dog bed. _Gali never minded sharing_ , he thought.

“I’m guessing he’s staying here then?” Doc came up beside him, looking down at Einstein.

“My mom’s allergic to dogs,” Marty admitted sheepishly, causing Doc to laugh.

“Now, where’s that brand new guitar you were going on about last week?” The older man asked. Marty’s face lit up as he quickly went over to the couch to pull out his brand new guitar.

“Here she is,” He said proudly, handing it to Doc to inspect. “I’ve been waiting to hook her up to the amp, but I guess that’s going to have to wait.” He noted, his gaze shifting back to the little pile of fur sound asleep.

“I guess you will, that’s a shame too,” Doc replied, handing the guitar back to Marty. The teen narrowed his eyes at the older man.

“What do you mean by that, Doc?”

“Well I just finished putting together your birthday present,” He admitted, pulling a large box from out of nowhere.

“Doc, you shouldn’t have.” He said, tearing open the gift as soon as he could. “Holy shit, Doc! This looks…this looks almost exactly like a Marshall JCM800 2203.”

“I might have studied it extensively so I could replicate it…with some improvements.” Gently placing the amp on the floor, Marty moved to give Doc a hug, too excited not to.

“Thanks, Doc.” He mumbled, relieved when Doc hugged him back.

“Happy birthday, Marty.” He replied, ruffling Marty’s hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://vm.tiktok.com/ZMJsMdmp3/


	4. just not smart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> uhhhhhhhhhh......this is it, yeah this is the last chapter

Just as Marty asked few questions of Doc, Doc rarely asked the teen about things outside of the lab, his band, and his girlfriend. Apart from a few complaints over the years, he didn’t know a whole lot about Marty’s home life, just that he had two parents and two siblings. Let alone his progress in school. At least that’s what Marty assumed. He also assumed Doc wasn’t aware of his recent trips to the garage in the early mornings.

The old man was always out when Marty’s first period began on Wednesdays and Thursdays, so he assumed Doc was none the wiser of his delinquent actions. Not that Marty was new to skipping class, but skipping one class multiple times was new for him and the anxiety of his actions had begun to eat at him. So when the door suddenly opened, it wasn’t surprising that Marty shot up from his laid back position on the couch, his face burning the minute he made eye-contact with Doc.

“You know, this is the second week in a row you’ve been here past eight,” Doc noted, putting down the bag he’d been carrying onto the counter. Marty felt like a kid who just got caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

“Uh, Doc…I didn’t know you’d be home…” Was all he could think to say as he quickly weighed the odds, lying to Doc didn’t seem like an option.

“Go on, tell me why you’ve been ditching your science class.”

“You even know what class I’m avoiding?” He asked, earnestly shocked.

“Don’t change the subject,” Was Doc’s only reply as he moved about the room.

“I uh…well,” Marty scratched the back of his neck, not knowing how to say it. “I’m failing physics…” _That’s how apparently_.

“What?!” Doc turned around to look at the teen, his brows furrowing. “How can this be true, of all classes? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

“I d-didn’t want to bother you, I guess.” That was at least a half-truth and Marty hoped it was close enough.

“That’s it?” Doc asked, more confused than before. _Not enough_.

“Well…and uh…” Marty had sat back down on the couch, Einstein jumping up to rest his head in the teen's lap. “I guess I just didn’t want to disappoint you…with me not being smart enough and all…” He trailed off, his gaze focused on Einstein as he gave him the best belly rub of his life.

“Marty,” Making his way over to the couch, Doc placed a gentle hand on Marty’s shoulder. “I could never be disappointed in you. You’re a smart kid, grades are not always the best indicator of intelligence, you know?” He pointed out as he sat across from Marty, on the coffee table. “But you should have told me sooner.” Doc re-stated. “We are really going to have to buckle down to get you caught up.”

“You really don’t have to help me with this, Doc. I know you probably have more important things to do.” Marty said as he got up, slipping on his jacket. “I don’t want to waste your time, I’m just your assistant anyway.”

“Marty, you’re not a waste of time,” Doc tried to reassure the teen, standing to follow him. “Your problem _is_ important to me…and what are _friends_ for anyway?” He added, causing Marty to stop and turn to face the older man.

“Well gosh, Doc. I guess you can help me if it means that much.” Marty shrugged to play it cool, but the smile that began to spread across the teen’s face was infectious.

“Alright then,” Doc smiled back. “Do you have the textbook on you?”

“Oh, you mean _right_ now?”

“What better time like the present,” Doc said as he began to clear a table. “Besides, it’s too late for you to make it to class now.”

“You’re the Doc, Doc,” Marty conceded as he pulled out his book, how bad could being taught physics by a scientific genius be?

~

“You’re not thinking fourth dimensionally!” Doc was exasperated as he stood from the table. It had been a month since he offered to help Marty with his physics class and the two had begun to drive each other mad.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” Marty sighed, dropping his pencil on the table before standing up to find Einstein, who never expected anything from him.

“No that’s the problem, you’re not getting it.” Doc rubbed his face as he looked around the cluttered garage.

“Why don’t I go grab dinner,” He offered, giving Einstein one last scratch behind the ear before he tried to leave. Maybe fresh air would help clear his mind.

“Wait…I’m sorry, Marty.” The older man shook his head. “We just need to approach this a different way.”

“Let’s face it, Doc. I’m just not smart,” Marty shrugged.

“You’re plenty smart, kid. I just need to explain this differently, that’s all.” Doc admitted. “Come here I think I have an idea.” He said, moving to grab a few things laying around. Marty complied, moving to stand on the other side of the table. “Ok, before we get into the Hall effect, what is the Lorentz force?” Doc asked, placing the things he had gathered on the table.

“I don’t know,” Marty shrugged again, defeated by the lack of progress he had been making. “Something about magnets.”

“Very good! It does have to do with the magnetic field.” The old man praised him. Taking a straw from an old Burger King cup, Doc handed Marty the cup while he held onto the straw. “Alright, now this straw represents electric charges flowing through a wire, and your cup is a magnet.” He paused.

“…Ok…” Marty replied.

“Now, if you step closer with your magnet, then the electric charges will begin to deflect,” Doc stated, curving the straw up as Marty moved the magnet/cup closer. “And if you flip your magnet around it will bend the electric charges the other way.” He said bending the straw down. “And when we take this sheet of metal,” Doc added, leaning over to grab the random scrap metal he placed on the table. “And place it in-between your magnet and my flow of electric charges,” Handing over the scrap of metal for Marty to hold, Doc bent his straw. “The magnetic field goes through the metal.” Taking the junk from Marty, he placed everything back on the table. “That is the Lorentz force.”

“Ok,” Marty responded, finally beginning to grasp what the textbook had been trying to tell him.

“Now for the Hall effect,” Doc said causing Marty to groan in frustration.

They had been talking about it all evening and Marty still wasn’t close to understanding it in the least bit. Standing next to Doc, Marty looked down at the table as the older man placed a piece of paper in the middle.

“This piece of paper represents this wire,” Doc stated holding up the wire before placing it back on the table. “In this wire are the same electric charges I was talking about before.”

“Ok,” Marty said again, feeling like a broken record.

“Hall wanted to know what would happen if you took this wire with these electric charges running through it, and placed a magnet in the middle of it.” As he talked he placed a small dog toy on the table to represent the electric charges, grabbing the cup from earlier to represent the magnet again. “What do you think will happen?”

“Ummm…” Marty stalled looking down at the table for a second. “The charge will deflect?”

“That’s right, Marty!” Doc exclaimed with a smile. “When this happens, the negative charge will deflect to the edge of the wire, but this will also create a positive charge to develop on the opposite side.” He demonstrated with dog toys and the fast-food cup, resting the toys at the top or bottom of the paper.

“Ok, so how do the electric charges go through the wire then?”

“Well, when the positive and negative charges build up, another negative charge will make its way down the wire,” Doc explained, moving another dog toy across the paper. “But it will want to go toward the positive charge, on the other hand, the magnetic field is forcing it to go the opposite direction. Because of this, the charge will end up flowing down the middle not being attracted to either side.”

“So it acts as if the magnet wasn’t there to begin with?”

“Yes! Exactly!”

“But if the electric charge eventually flows down the wire as if there’s not a magnet, what’s the point?”

“Because when this happens, you get a difference in electric potential across the wire, and _that_ is the Hall effect.” Doc finished, throwing the dog toy in his hand for Einstein to catch. “Did that make more sense?”

“It did actually, yeah,” Marty replied, still looking down at the table. “But I still don’t understand what it really means…or why it’s important.” His words caused Doc to give him a tight-lipped smile.

“One thing at a time,” He responded, patting Marty’s shoulder.

~

Turning the corner, Marty swerved out of the way to avoid crashing into a car leaving the parking lot. The near-tragic event forgotten about as soon as it passed, Marty too excited to get to Doc’s. He was surprised to find the Doc himself eagerly waiting by the door.

“Well, how did it go?” Doc asked, watching Marty’s expression for a sign.

“I umm…” Marty trailed off scratching the back of his neck, his act lasting nearly three seconds before he couldn’t hide it anymore. With a grin, he pulled his test out from behind his back. “I got a B!”

“You got a B, Marty! That’s terrific!” Doc exclaimed as he looked at the grade on the paper. Einstein ran over to Marty and began jumping on him, wondering what all the excitement was about. “Einstein and I both knew you could do it, isn’t that right?” Doc asked their furry companion, patting him on the head.

“Thanks, Doc,” Marty said still smiling. “And thank you, Einstein.” He practically cooed at Einstein, scratching behind his ears.

“This is a cause for celebration!” Doc added, grabbing his coat. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“Burger King?” Marty guessed.

“Burger King,” Doc confirmed, opening the door. “Oh, by the way, I’m working on building a giant music center on the back wall.”

“What?!” Turning off the lights, Marty closed the door as they headed towards the restaurant, wondering when it was exactly his family grew by two.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen, was this ending incredibly cheesy and borderline bad? Yeah probably, I was going to end it at Burger Kind but felt it deserved more.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! Likes and comments are loved and appreciated.
> 
> Follow me on Tumblr @  
> tv-saved-the-teenage-girl.tumblr.com


End file.
